Disturbed

How to spell disturbed

9 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce disturbed

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does disturbed mean?

1. verbInterrupted, interfered with, or broke the calm or settled state of something.
2. adjectiveEmotionally or mentally unsettled, anxious, or suffering inner turmoil.
3. adjectiveHaving had its normal or natural state interrupted or interfered with.

Disturbed in a sentence

• verb

  The constant phone alerts disturbed her concentration all afternoon.

• adjective

  The counsellor specialised in supporting deeply disturbed teenagers.

• adjective

  The survey found large areas of disturbed soil where the pipeline had been laid.

• verb

  Roadworks outside the office disturbed the morning meeting.

• adjective

  His diary revealed how disturbed he had felt during those years.

• adjective

  After the storm, the disturbed wildlife took weeks to return to the marsh.

Where does disturbed come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb disturbare, formed from the intensifying prefix dis- (here meaning 'utterly' or 'completely') and turbare, which meant 'to throw into disorder' or 'to confuse'. The root turbare itself grew from turba, a Latin noun for a crowd, a commotion, or general turmoil, so the underlying image is of a calm scene being stirred up like a milling mob. English took the word in around 1300 through Old French destourber, originally with the sense of interrupting peace or quiet. From that physical idea of breaking calm came the later figurative use describing a troubled or unsettled mind. The same turba root survives in the everyday words 'turbid', 'turbulence', and even 'trouble', which helps fix the central -turb- spelling in memory.

How the word is built

• dis- (utterly, completely)
• turb (from Latin turbare: to throw into confusion)
• -ed (past tense / adjective suffix)